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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stick · capital · mine · press · race · current

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. current — of water
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. capital — a city
  6. press — a publisher
  7. press — newspapers
  8. capital — money
  9. press — to push
  10. race — a contest
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. current — electric
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — humankind

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com